Never Can Say Goodbye
by Only Sarah
Summary: Because no matter how mad you are, you still love her, and you can't let her slip away. Set during Goodbye Zoey. What should have happened when Zoey went to talk to Chase about going to England. Review! ONESHOT


Goodbye Zoey?

In my mind, the whole Zoey/Chase fiasco that occurred in Goodbye Zoey would never have happened. Slightly AU. It's really fluffy towards the end, but sometimes that's a good thing.

Disclaimer: If I owned Zoey 101, Chasing Zoey would have been 100x better, and they'd currently be in season 8. But I don't. Sigh.

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><p>Chase sat on his bed, with tears filling his eyes, threatening to spill. He was in disbelief. He couldn't understand why she could just decide to leave PCA without as much as a word to him about it. He had been a slave to her over the past three years, doing anything she asked, not expecting anything in return. He had fallen, literally, for her more and more each year, causing himself both physical and emotional pain with each time he hit the ground. He didn't cry easily, and she was one of the few people who had seem him at both his best and his worst. He thought he could trust her with his life, and that she felt the same for him. No matter how hard he tries to get over it, he knows that he loves Zoey Brooks, and he's realizing that she couldn't ever feel the same.<p>

He hears the knocking at the door, and he hears her voice on the other side, calling his name. He composes himself long enough to go open the door.

He tries to make the sarcasm in his voice evident because he wants her to feel the same pain that she caused him, the same pain she always causes him.

"Hiya"

"Do you have a moment to talk?"

"For you? Sure"

"Good, because there's something I need to talk to you about"

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

He sees her confusion, sees her finally clue in that he's upset, but he can't bring himself to look her in the eye. He can't cry in front of her. If she doesn't fucking care about his feelings then he isn't going to spare hers.

"Is everything okay?" She asks

Nothing is okay. Nothing is fucking okay.

"Everything is awesome"

He can't look at her. He can't talk to her.

"Well you see, my parents are moving to England for a while, and there's this school called Covington."

"Oh Covington, that's supposed to be an amazing school. That's really cool that you get to go there"

He picks up his darts and throws them, too quickly. He can't listen to her talk about moving, because she can't leave but she is leaving and oh my god Matthews man up

"Will you stop playing darts for a minute?"

"No I gotta tune up, but keep going, I'm listening."

"Well I just wanted to talk to you about this, first."

First, right. More like tell every person on campus that you're leaving. Who cares about Chase, anyways?

"Well you should probably get some warm clothes. The weather in England isn't like California. You should get a big coat, some sweaters, maybe some heavy socks"

He couldn't look at her but he could hear the pain in her voice.

"Is that all you have to say?"

"Oh and they drive on the left so be careful when crossing the street"

"Thanks, I appreciate the advice…"

"Anytime" He said, not bothering to hide anymore.

He turned to see her standing in the doorway. She began to walk out, but changed her mind and walked back in.

"You know, it almost seems like you want me to leave" She said slowly, and began to leave again.

"Zoey….wait"

She turned around and he saw what appeared to be a tear, sliding down her cheek, but she brushed it away before he could get a better look.

"What, you have more of your great advice to share?"

"Zoey, why would you ever think I want you to leave PCA?"

"Well by the way you've been acting since I walked in here, it sure seems like you do"

He took a deep breath and looked her in the eye for the first time all night.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Huh?"

"Why didn't you tell me you were leaving BEFORE you decided to just pack up and leave PCA forever?"

"Chase I –"

"I had to hear it in the halls, and all over campus. I thought I was your friend, Zoey, but I guess I don't mean as much to you as I thought"

"Chase-"

He cut her off again.

"I had to hear from DEL FIGGALO and some other guy I barely know"

"CHASE"

"What" He answered curtly.

"When I walked in here, I hadn't made up my mind to go. I wanted your opinion, and I guess you just made up my mind for me."

"Wait….what?"

"Not once have you said that you don't want me to leave. Not one time."

"Zoey"

"I was really counting on you to give me a reason why I shouldn't leave. Nobody else is being helpful, and you're opinion means most to me."

"I don't want you to leave PCA, Zoe."

"Well give me one good reason why I should stay. This is an amazing opportunity for me, so tell me why I should stay and I will."

He could almost hear Michael standing behind him yelling TELL HER in his ear. He took a deep breath and looked down.

"You want a reason? I'll give you a reason."

"And that is…?"

"Are you sure you want to hear?"

"Chase, just tell me"

He paused and looked her in the eye again.

"I'm going to tell you something, a reason why I don't want you to leave. If this makes you decide to leave, then I understand. I don't even need an answer back, I just want you to listen"

"I'm listening, Chase. Just tell me"

He walked to the couch and sat down, pulling her over to sit beside him.

"Zoey…..the reason I don't want you to leave is…is."

He was going to puke.

"Chase just say it"

He looked her directly in the eye, and said

"Zoey, I….. I'm in love with you."

He looked away because he couldn't face her. She could never love a guy like him.

"You, what?"

"It wasn't easy to say the first time"

"You're in love with me?"

"Uh yup"

"How long have you felt this way?"

"Pretty much since the moment I saw you"

"And you never told me this because?"

"Zoey, you're my best friend. I figured that since you probably don't see me the same way, it would just be awkward between us. I don't want to lose you as a friend."

"Chase, you really don't think that I wouldn't talk to you anymore, do you?"

"Well, yeah." He sighed. "Look, I'm not asking for an answer from you. That's just my reason why I don't want you to go."

Several moments passed before either of them spoke again. The tension in the room could be cut with a knife. After what felt like forever, Zoey broke the silence.

"Truthfully, I never would have imagined that YOU of all people would be in love with me. I mean, Lola and Quinn said something back in September but I never believed them."

She paused, and then continued.

"I'm going to give you an answer, Chase. I've never really thought about this, so let me sleep on it and we can talk tomorrow."

"So….about you leaving PCA?"

"I'm not going to do it. I can't leave knowing that."

Chase smiled, not bothering to hide his relief.

"Oh thank God"

Laughing, Zoey said "Well things are all starting to make sense now."

"Yeah I guess I wasn't very good at hiding it"

"Well I didn't have a clue, so you were better than you thought. But one question."

"Ask me"

Still smiling, she said "Why go through all that trouble to hide this from me?"

"Because I'm very, very stupid"

They both laughed.

"Well, Fuzzyhead, promise me something. Please don't hide anything from me anymore. Please"

"Promise."

She stood up, and he did the same.

"Well I think I'm going to head back to my dorm, it's getting late. Text me in the morning, let's get coffee and we can talk some more."

"Sounds like a plan. So, we're still friends?"

"Of course"

She walked up and put her arms around his waist, and he hugged her back, resting his chin on the top of her head. They stood there for what seemed like an eternity, until she pulled away to look at him.

When he caught her eye, he swore he saw something change. Something that said that maybe – just maybe, she felt something for him.

"Goodnight, Chase"

"Night"

As she walked out of his room, he felt as if the world had been lifted off of his shoulders. He had never felt more relieved or freer in his life.

He knew Michael and Logan would interrogate him as soon as they got here, so he quickly changed and went to bed, hoping to avoid their questions. As they walked in, he tried his very hardest to pretend to sleep. They noticed him in bed, and went to sleep themselves.

There would be no sleep for Chase tonight apparently. He stayed awake, analysing every. single. word. that Zoey had said to him. He wished and begged and prayed that something inside of Zoey felt the same for him, that he wasn't just imagining things. After tossing and turning, he decided to go for a walk, hoping to clear his head.

He walked around campus for a while, still overthinking everything. He sat down near the back of the fountain, facing away from the school buildings. After a while, he heard those oh so familiar footsteps approaching from behind.

He didn't bother to turn as he felt hands on his shoulders. Zoey always seemed to have a way of finding him, no matter the place or the time.

"What are you doing sitting out here at four in the morning?" She spoke, sounding tired and just as restless as he felt.

He looked up at her, and smiled a little. "Couldn't sleep. I could ask you the same question".

She walked around and sat beside him.

"Same. I talked to my parents for a while. They really want me to come to London but I just can't do it. I mean it's going to be hard being so far away from them for so long but PCA has been my home, I can't leave"

She looked up, and then continued.

"I've been thinking a lot about the past few years since I started here, and I couldn't have asked for a better group of friends, or a better best friend."

The words spilled out of her mouth quickly, and Chase made no attempt to stop her.

"Chase, you and I have been through so much together. I love spending time with you and just hanging out. Nobody else seems to understand me and my antics as well as you do, and I wouldn't have changed any of it. You really are my best friend and – "

She cut off, looking up at the sky. His face started burning and his stomach dropped to somewhere in his toes. He could almost _feel _the 'let's just be friends' speech coming up, something he was definitely not prepared for.

She spoke again, this time looking him straight in the eye.

"I never would have expected that you of all people would have feelings for me. But after I've been thinking about it, it makes perfect sense."

His voice was gone, miles and miles away from him. He couldn't speak. He couldn't even breathe.

"You're the first person I want to talk to when I'm happy, the first person I want to tell when something happens, and the only person who I want to talk to when I'm upset. You make me happy. So after some thinking, I've realized that Chase Matthews, I'm in love with you."

By some miracle, he found his voice.

"You are?"

"Yes I am" She had a tear in her eye, but she was smiling.

"Are you sure?"

She laughed and took his hand, and said "Yes Chase, I am in love with you. I am sure."

"Wow."

She reached up and put her hand on his cheek, and leaning in, closing the gap between them.

When she pressed her lips to his for the first time, he felt everything. After getting over the initial shock, he kissed her back with all that he could. They sat there kissing for what felt like an eternity, neither of them wanting to stop.

Finally, she pulled away, and it was Chase who spoke.

"I love you, Zoey Brooks."

"And I love you too, Chase Matthews"

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><p><strong>AN**

Please review!

I know Zoey 101 ended like 7 years ago, but while scrolling through twitter I came across a recent picture of Sean Flynn (Chase!) and this has been on my mind ever since.

I used to frequently read through the Choey section, and I'm sure many of you would agree that it needs some cleaning up. Like really badly.

Again, PLEASE review! Did you like it? Hate it? Have any ideas/suggestions? Give me a shout!

-Sarah


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